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Details Of Duerson’s Suicide Released

Former Chicago teammate Dave Duerson holds up his driver,s license that shows he is an organ donor at Chicago’s Soldier Field during a public memorial service for former Chicago Bears great Walter Payton, 06 November 1999. (TANNEN MAURY/AFP/Getty Images)

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MIAMI (CBS4) – The Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner’s Office has released the details of their findings in the death of former NFL star Dave Duerson. The two-time Super Bowl winning safety committed suicide by firing a .38 caliber bullet into his heart.

The manager of Duerson’s condominium was first alerted to a problem at 2:45 p.m. when he received a call from Duerson’s fiancé in Chicago. The manager knocked on the door, but there was no answer.

Duerson’s fiancé emailed authorization to the manager to enter the unit. A chair was wedged up to the door and after 911 was called; the fire department had to push in the door.

According to the report, multiple documents had been laid out on the bed in the second bedroom of his home on Collins Avenue, along with two framed certificates, framed medals, and a folded American flag at the head of the bed.

Duerson was found in the middle of the bed in the master bedroom of his condominium. His gun had five-shot in it, but only one round was spent.

According to the report, Duerson had difficulty with bankruptcy issues dating from past investments. The medical examiner said this was despite winning a $35 million lawsuit. None of the money from the lawsuit was ever collected.

The medical examiner’s report said that Duerson complained of memory loss and an inability to spell. He had asked his brain to be donated to the NFL Brain Bank for research.

Duerson’s suicide is the latest in a string of former NFL players who have died or been stricken with severe diseases after finishing their careers.

Many of the other players have had severe mental problems due to the numerous concussions they suffered while playing.

The NFL has started to make player safety a priority by changing rules about how players can launch themselves for a tackle.

However, many players object to this saying it changes the physicality of the game and is too tough to retrain themselves to the new rules.